butterflies ઇଓ matt sturniolo imagines

𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘧𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘴𝘵

ॱ⋅.˳˳.⋅˙ॱᐧ.˳˳.⋅ઇଓ

     you were always the one who needed consoling. you'd been strong and alone your whole life, and now that you've met matt, you've traded some of that strength for his. you don't have to fight alone anymore because he was there to take care of you- but that also meant you had to take care of him, which was something you hadn't needed to do until now. and you weren't exactly sure how to go about that.

     matt and his brothers had taken a trip to the mall earlier in the afternoon, and he came back with some new clothes. the boy looked so happy to have fresh things, and he rushed off to his bedroom with an eager promise to show you what he bought; you cheered him on, and made him (reluctantly) agree to a fashion show. that was about twenty minutes ago. since then there has been no noise, no explanation, no nothing from behind his bedroom door, and you were getting worried. you tried to think of reasons for why he'd gone MIA, but nothing seemed to stick.
maybe he's just making sure things fit.
maybe he doesn't like all of the stuff he bought.
maybe he fell asleep in a pile of clothes.

after another five minutes, you were too antsy to sit still any longer. you pushed off the living room couch and padded down the hallway towards his room, and knocked gently to see if he'd answer. when you tried the handle, it wouldn't budge.
he locked the door, you thought, this isn't like him.
you knocked again, and again, and at least three hundred times- or what felt like it- and you called out to him, but he refused to open the door.

     "come on, matt, open up."

     nothing.

     "bub, i promise i can help, just let me in!"

     dead silence.

     you were starting to get scared. you didn't know what he might be up to in there, or how he might be feeling, and as long as he was holed up inside you'd never know. this distance he was putting between you two was starting to press panic into your chest.

     you smushed your cheek to the door and sighed, letting your hand loosen on the doorknob. "matty, please open up. i'm worried. please."

     you rested for a beat, eyes closed as you listened to the door. and just as you were about to make another futile call, the lock clicked under your hand.

     "can i come in? is that what that means?" you checked.

     "mhm."

     you twisted the doorknob and pushed the door open, finding matt standing behind it with bloodshot eyes. he wiped at his nose harshly before pivoting on his heels and walking over to his bed, sitting at the edge with slumped shoulders. you followed him over and sat right beside him, pressing your leg against his; in a moment of uncertainty you let your hand wander to the middle of his back, and you scratched softly at the skin covered by a t-shirt. you hadn't seen this shirt before- it was a raglan with black sleeves and a white body, and his clung to his arms tightly. you wanted to tell him he looked handsome, but the pit in your stomach told you to stow that compliment away for later.

     "what's going on? why'd you lock yourself in here, bub?"

     matt was clearly forcing himself to stay stoic. his jaw was clenched so hard you could feel the tension in your own mouth. the boy let a quick sniffle pass through his barrier and turned his head away, releasing a heavy breath.

     "matty, i can't know what's going on if you don't tell me."

     you ran your palm up and down his back, making sure to smooth it over his taut shoulders and sharp shoulder blades. he liked little touches, so that's what you gave him. it took a minute or two for him to turn back around, and when he did, your heart sank; his nose was glossy like he'd been crying, and his eyes were, too. they were red and puffy, and the little dark patches of skin beneath them that you adored appeared even darker. he looked so upset it broke a little piece of your heart off and crushed it into bits, like stomping on a chipped piece from a favorite teacup.